Thursday, July 26, 2012

Chiang Rai, Thailand

The Golden Toilet

The Golden Toilets at Wat Rong Khun are undoubtedly the finest public toilets in the entire nation. The White Temple is a Buddhist temple created by Chalermchai Kositpipat, an architect that earned a fortune working for the Sultan of Brunei. The White Temple is his gift back to his homeland.

The White Temple

In Thailand, important stuff is covered in gold, so the stark white temple with Gaudi-style architecture can cause more than a little confusion. Plenty of tourists come off the bus and head straight for the gleaming gold toilets with cameras flashing.

Foot Wash

Private Squatters

flip flops provided

Maybe the architect was trying to teach us something by making the toilet stand out more than the temple. The guy is an architectural genius; his subliminal messages are pretty clever as well. Things like the groping hands reaching up from below the bridge is kind of creepy. Water-spewing dragon is pretty impressive as well. Inside the temple was a wax reproduction of one of the dead monks that would have made Madame Tussaud proud.